Special trial ordered for swimmers hoping to go for Olympics

By Leslie Fernando

SWIMMING: A special trial will be held on June 14 at the Sugathadasa Stadium pool to pick two swimmers - a boy and a girl to represent Sri Lanka at the Beijing Olympic Games.

A special trial will be held on the orders given by the three-member special committee appointed by the Sports Minister Gamini Lokuge. Originally the Interim Committee of Sri Lanka Aquatic Sports Union selected Heshan Unamboowe and Mayuni Raheem to swim at the Olympic Games.

However, due to several requests made to Sports Minister Lokuge to have a fair trial, the Minister appointed a three-member committee Director of Sports General D. Dahanayake, Sports Department Director General B.L.S. Perera and Swimming Association Interim Committee President DIG Sirisena Herath to go into the matter and sort out the issue.

The three-member committee has decided to hold a special trial to pick the two swimmers.

Nethru Nanayakkara, Media Co-Ordinator of Sri Lanka Aquatic Sports Union said that swimmers training abroad should face the trial.

The criteria for selection will be the timing by the swimmer that is close to the Olympic level qualifying standard timing. Nanayakkara further said that swimmers training abroad should make their own travel arrangements for the trial.

Past swimmers and officials who too have swum at important meets have questioned about the credentials of the three-member selection committee appointed by the Sports Minister to pick the swimmers for the important event. Have any member of the selection committee swum at any international meet? If they have not swum before at an important meet, then how can they sit in judgement, they asked?

The order of events for the special trial will be:” 800 metres Freestyle, 1,500 metres Freestyle, 200 metres Freestyle, 200 metres Breast Stroke, 200 metres Butterfly Stroke, 200 metres Back Stroke, 4x100 metres Individual Medley, 400 metres Freestyle, 100 metres Breast Stroke, 100 metres Butterfly Stroke, 100 metres Back Stroke, 100 metres Freestyle, 200 metres Individual Medley and 50 metres Freestyle.

It is reliably understood that Mayuni Raheem who is studying and training in Singapore, Daniel Lee training in Australia, Heshan Unamboowe of Trinity College, Miniruwani Samarakoon of Gateway School in Kandy will attend the trials.